After almost five years I have returned to Ireland to continue my E8. The delay was longer than anticipated. First my desire to be an ultrarunner were interfering with ruining my legs & feet while hiking. After that covid made it difficult to enjoy travelling. But I do have the desire to pick it up where I left it so I booked the airline tickets and scheduled to be in Dublin on the famous St. Patrick’s Day. As I have done during almost all of my E8 I travel as much as possible forwards, meaning I fly to Cork, spend the night in Wexford and take the first train north to Arklow. There I take a taxi to the infamous bridge where I had to quit the last time.

The disadvantage of living far away and having a full calendar is that you have to plan way ahead. Aspects like the weather conditions are irrelevant in the planning. Consequently this trip in March treats me with not-optimal hiking weather. When I start my hike at 07.30 it drizzles, the temperature is a few degrees above freezing point and there is some wind. However, I am excited to be back on the Trail, I follow the signs up the hills and make the best out of it. The drizzling stops and it starts to rain. It won’t stop for the rest of the day. Higher up in the hills there is fresh snow, but it is not uncomfortable or slippery.

E8 in March

Today I have to climb and desent two main hills. The first one goes up in stages, from 175m altitude to 510m. The descent, down to the village of Glenmalur, is pretty steep, which is not appreciated by my legs and feet. It is quiet on the Trail, there is nobody out there in the pouring rain. When crossing Glenmalur, just a very small village on the crossing of two main roads in this valley, I decide not to stop for a break but continue. Today’s stage is not very long and I would like to get out of the rain as quickly as possible. The second hill of the day takes me from 125m altitude to almost 600m. The slope is steep, the wind is blowing harder than earlier in the morning. There is no visibility, no view at all, which is a shame since I am hiking to Glendalough; many visitors of Ireland consider this to be one of the highlights of the Irish countryside. In the forrest, before arriving in the valley, the conditions are not so bad anymore and the pictures that I take look lovely.

comfortable roads & signs

Down in Glendalough there are some tourists but there are no views of idyllic lakes and scenery. Everything is covered in clouds and fogg. I check in at the international hostel and change to dry clothes. Due to the international energy crisis the costs for heating have exploded and so the heating is only switched on in the living room between 1900 and 2100! The guestrooms remain as they are (cold, moist). I try to get my soaken clothes to dry in the heating room, but to very limited avail. Not a nice end of a tough day.